("Safety has always been a big deal to Volvo," says Bob Hagin. His
son Matt says that with it's rough-duty Cross Country model, Volvo
encourages its owners to do it in the dirt.)

BOB - Being typically Swedish, Volvo has always been big on
producing vehicles that would serve in extremely cold weather and on
snow-covered roads, but it never got into the sport/utility end of the
market. But now the company is offering its loyal followers almost the
best of both the station wagon and SUV worlds. According to the Volvo
press pack, its V70 XC wagon can operate on just about anything that can
pass for a road, which is good logic. Very few true SUV's ever go off
into the bramble-bushes or do any boulder-crawling and their main
purpose in life is either to look "cool" or carry their occupants over
snowy streets and highways. Its ground clearance of 7.6 inches is as
high as some of the fancy 4X4s, but its passenger car-like overhangs
front and rear keep it from getting too aggressive off the road.

MATT - But even the "traditional" SUV is changing, Dad. Originally
they were four-wheel-drive pickup trucks with the beds converted into
passenger compartments. They had truck frames and solid truck axles. But
that's changing and a great number of modern small SUVs are built on
raised sedan platforms with front-wheel drive as the primary system and
an all-wheel-drive mode that switches back and forth automatically. The
Volvo XC is basically one of these and its function is to simply
transport its occupants and contents safely in all kinds of weather.

BOB - Being in the luxury car class, it does it with some pretty
fancy and technically-advanced items. Its engine is a transverse-mounted
five-cylinder, twin-cam turbocharged engine that uses an advanced type
of variable valve timing. It puts out 195 horses, but because of this
high-tech valve operating system, it puts out considerable amounts of
torque at very low engine speeds. This gives it plenty of power to get
through tough areas without needing to spin the revs too high. It uses a
five-speed automatic transmission that's progressively selectable
manually, kind of like a motorcycle. It has a traction control system,
of course, and it can transfer its torque away from any of the wheels
that are spinning on ice or mud and put it over to the wheels that need
traction. It's pretty much based on the standard V70 station wagon, but
it's got over an inch of extra ground clearance and its track is wider
to accommodate the wider wheels and heavy-duty tires.

MATT - I wish Volvo would give us one during ski season - the kids
and I would have a blast. We'd enjoy the luxury-car interior, which is
leather, of course, and the driver's seat is eight-way adjustable. The
front passenger has to settle for changing that seat manually, however.
Since the V70 XC is being marketed to upscale drivers who have a
tendency to be the outdoors type, the rear seat has a three-position
lay-down system. The center section can be flopped forward to allow long
items like skis to be packed inside, but four people can still be
carried. As an option, Volvo can supply a body-colored, roof-mounted
cargo box that is built to fit the factory roof rack. Those coffin-like
boxes hold lots of cargo, an they're the perfect place to put wet skis
and muddy boots. It's got a space provided for a factory shoulder pack
that fits into the drop-down recess in the middle of the rear seat, and
a factory-built 12-volt cooling chest too. It's kind of like a Swiss
army knife on wheels.

BOB - The styling lines of the Cross Country are more modern and
"soft" than the traditional upright Volvo profile to which we've become
accustomed, but it's still not a "cookie-cutter" silhouette that looks
like many other vehicles on the market. It is still identifiable as a
Volvo when you see it in traffic. Volvo safety extends into the realm of
personal safety, too, The keyless remote fob has a trigger that can set
off a panic alarm, and the lights can be turned on by the same remote to
light up the area around the outside of the car.

MATT - It's getting to be a scary world out there, Dad. It's a good
thing you don't drive at night.

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